Category: We The People

Description: We (African Americans) have not overcome in the true sense of the word since Abraham Lincoln signed the “Emancipation Proclamation” which was meant to free the slaves. Though “Overcoming” depicts some of the efforts that have been made to become free, we still have a long way to go as it pertains to freedom and certain rights as a race of people. It pays homage in art form to the late Rev Martin Luther King and many other dedicated civil rights activists. Unfortunately, Dr King and many civil rights activists lost their lives fighting for their rights. They believed in the words to the age-old freedom song “We Shall Overcome,” but many would agree that we’re still in the process of “Overcoming.” The idea for making “Overcoming” came from a gift bag given to her by a friend’s daughter. She said, “Here Mom, give this bag to Camilla. She may be able to get an idea for a quilt from it.” Camilla liked the picture on the bag and kept it for at least twelve years. Using the bag as inspiration, she enlarged the pattern and used the layout of the curved squares on the bag to make a collage style curved block quilt. The rest was “design as you go.” She added the spaces in between the blocks to make it more of a “Mosaic” or “Collage” style.